BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Radford was edged on the road at Gardner-Webb, 55-53, Saturday afternoon from Paul Porter Arena. Sophomore Taleia Moton (Fort Washington, Md.) led all scorers with 21 points. GWU's Dominique Hudson paced the Runnin' Bulldogs (12-10, 4-5 Big South) with 19 points.

Box Score

With the score tied at 45-45, Courtney Epps drained a three and hit a fast break layup to put Gardner-Webb up 50-45 with 6:05 left in the game. The Highlanders (6-14, 5-4 Big South) tried to make a late comeback, cutting it to 54-53 with seven seconds to go. After Hudson made 1-of-2 at the charity stripe with 4.8 seconds left, Moton was able to get off a 25-footer but the shot was just a little strong and the Bulldogs hung on for the victory.

“We played a great defensive game forcing them into a lot of difficult shots, but we couldn't grab a rebound, allowing them too many second and third chances,” said head coach Tajama Ngongba. “Those second and third opportunities in the first half and early in the second half gave them confidence, getting them back into the game and eventually taking the lead.”

Moton, who netted 20 points for the third time in her last four games, was 7-for-16 from the field and 7-for-8 from the line, rebounding from a three-point performance at Liberty.

Junior Kymesha Alston (Hampton, Va./Manhattan) recorded her third double-double of the season with 10 points and a team-best 12 rebounds. Sophomore Denay Wood (Bailey's Crossroads, Va./Annandale) chipped in with 10 points, all in the second half.

Radford finished the game shooting 36 percent from field, including just 28 percent in the second half. The Highlanders also did not hit a three-pointer, going 0-10, snapping a streak of 160 straight games with a trifecta. They did a good job from the charity stripe, shooting 81 percent (13-16) and outrebounded the Bulldogs, 40-39.

Latroya Pope and Epps each chipped in 12 points for the Bulldogs. Margaret Roundtree pulled down a game-best 14 rebounds.

The Highlanders took a 32-29 lead into the break behind 12 points from Moton and a defense that forced 13 Gardner-Webb turnovers. Radford also shot 44.4 percent (12-27) from the field and 80 percent (8-10) from the free throw line.

A 10-3 run by the Highlanders broke an 8-8 tie and gave them an 18-11 lead with 10-13 left in the half. Alston scored the first bucket of the run at the 13:46 mark and Radford did not trail for the rest of the half.

After the Bulldogs cut the lead to three (26-23) on a Sherika Montgomery jumper in the paint, the Highlanders scored the next six points, highlighted by senior Johnette Walker's (Columbia, S.C./Irmo) three-point play. Gardner-Webb answered Radford's spurt, scoring the final six points of the half, including Epps' buzzer beater from 10 feet.

In the second half, Gardner-Webb used a 12-2 run, capped off by a Laura Povilonyte triple, to erase a 37-33 deficit and take a 45-39 lead at 11:05. That three was the first of the game for either team.

A 6-0 spurt by the Highlanders tied the game at 45 with 7:51 on the clock, but Epps hit her back-to-back shot to give the Bulldogs the lead for good.

Radford returns home next Saturday, Feb. 14, hosting Winthrop at 3 p.m. It will be WBCA Pink Zone day in the Dedmon Center, raising awareness towards the fight against breast cancer. The WBCA Pink Zone initiative is a global, unified effort for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond.